Sounding wonderful…reminded me of listening to 60s BBC radio – Jim Lloyd and co …now brilliant to connect all over the world…
It was heartening to hear such a ‘live’ exchange.
Fair play to RTE and you,as ever.
Thanks for bringing some daylight into a grey,wet bunker.
Dave
Christy's reply
I rem Jim Lloyd well, and Wally Whyton and the bass player on Country meets Folk ( his name ?)….its 53 years since I made my debut on that programme…it was utterly nerve wrecking, very exciting and carried great kudos…I got into a few “big” clubs on the back of it
Have a great afternoon…if possible to have a link to Ray’s show,sometime,that would be much appreciated…if the cyberspace winds are in the right direction I might be in luck,but the internet copyright police might be on the look out,if they’re not too busy nobbling Dylan bootlegs!
Hi All. Today is Poetry Day Ireland. Christy you occassionally introduce a Spoken Word piece in gigs, or invite poets to share the stage with you. In June 2016 you played a solo gig in Carrick on Suir in Co Tipperary, the home town of the Clancy Brothers and also of Michael Coady, a prose and poetry writer whom I greatly admire. During the gig you recited one of his poems, Though There are Torturers much to my delight, here is he reciting it https://youtu.be/1-LjviV9pg4 I subsequently heard that his wife was at the gig. Beir bua agus beannacht, H
Christy's reply
I recall the night for a number of reasons…firstly, I got to recite Michael Coady’s “Though There are Torturer’s” ( I think twas yourself that recommended it to me)..after the concert,then when leaving the Theatre I was presented with a most beautiful Salmon, caught a few hours earlier on the Suir River and left at the stage door by a good listener…
getting ready here today to chat with Ray Darcy on RTE 1 this afternoon…our home places only 5 miles apart. Altho we grew up a generation apart we have a lot in common…The Curragh of Kildare for starters !..
Johnny Duhan’s song “The Voyage” was featured on Ray’s programme last week which spurred him on to get in touch…
I’m missing the Gigs, the Band ,the Crew. I still have the Songs here with me but without the special atmosphere that only a good gaggle of listeners can create
Hey Christy. After 2010, I was in england for a bit, then I was in scotland for a bit and now I’ve been living in china for many years with my wife. Was planning on visiting ireland this summer but it might not be the best year to travel anywhere so wait and see I suppose. Haven’t been to gigs in recent years but the songs remain as present as ever for me. Ever since my mam bought me your box set for my birthday in 2004, I was hooked. I’d had a few of your albums already but once I started exploring the box set, I became a bigger fan. It’s an amazing release of material, so many different kinds of songs and stories at different stages, it’s brilliant.
I remember pity the poor immigrant is somewhere on the boxset, as part of a medley or a hidden track.
Do you still sing hattie carroll? I remember it was a big player on the setlist for awhile.
Christy's reply
” The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll” is one of my favourite songs to sing…Dylan paints such powerful pictures, he brings us right into the scenery of the place….
emptied ashtrays on a whole other level
doomed and determined to destroy all thats gentle
spoke thru his cloak most deep and distinguished
….. never made it myself as far China but no regrets….more inclined towards the “Sunny South East”….the old Box Set (1964-2004) being frequently referenced these days…it was a labour of love for all concerned..
I wish you and your wife well in the far east..keep coming back
Fantastic poets and their works being mentioned here.Thanks for tip offs that will be eagerly pursued…
Mike Harding has long been a poet of some acclaim,especially for comic verse…but,I’ve just seen a wonderful poem he wrote last year,after a close friend died…a perfect summary of compassion…can’t find it online,but Mike posted it on his Twitter account a few hours ago,so ‘The Nurse’ is available at @HardingMike…I seemed to get something in my eye during the last verse…D
Christy's reply
no better man them “our kid” from Crumpsall…his brother John is a good musician too
Hi Christy,
Such fine group chat over recent days ( even greater than normal).
There was some talk about Edna O’Brien, and i have to confess that i am not a great reader so i will have to dip in. However what i have been re-reading ,during the bunker-time, are the collected poems of Ethna Carberry ( Anna McManus). Such a beautiful range , can i recommend to folk her work.
A selection might be Rody McClorey, On Inisheer, My Yellow Yorlin and Donal Mac Seaghain Na Mallacht, but so much to wonder at ,and you need no better recommendation than that an admirer of her poetry was the great Bobby Sands.
I must try to read more, instead my mind usually strays towards the music ,just as it did on sunday and monday as i painted metal poles whilst listening to all of the beloved box set….now there is another fine thing of wonder and fascination.
Regards
Rory
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of Eavan Boland. The first time I read her poem Quarantine, love and death at the time of the famine, I was blown away:
‘In the worst hour of the worst season
of the worst year of a whole people…’ It gets me every time.
The wonderful and poetic Michael D summed her up when he said …her particular gift was to reveal the beauty in the ordinary.
Thanks Dave – there is just something so lovely that Ms O’Brien wrote ‘…all good wishes to another Country Girl…’ to your wife
Go well Christy Le grá Mary
Nowhere near as tricky as the harp,but the dulcimer’s fretboard means its almost foolproof…hence ,me going for the first Appalachian model c 1970…I’ve been noodling ever since…the stick dulcimer being a welcome addition.
If Rebecca fancies ‘I’ll Fly Away’,I reckon the melody would work well on a harp…trial and error can lead to some interesting finds…especially,without an audience!
I hope the Atkin is ringing out on this grey day…kind of sums up the sombre mood after a minute’s silence in remembrance of NHS staff and care workers who died battling Covid.
Mora duit Criostóir Ó Mórdha,
I hope I got that somewhere near to acceptable. If not, I am very sorry.
Dave asked about instruments, songs and practising. Here goes.
For I don’t know how long it’s all been harp and voice for me. I have to play and sing every day or I don’t feel so good. I usually spend at least 15 minutes a day with Ride On first. I wander round the chords and then add the voice in really gradually. I like to hum round things. Then I’ll move onto other things. Whatever I’m working on or is beckoning. I like to do some things that make me feel happy but I’m getting better at letting the songs flow through without touching. I love reel in the flickering light.
If anyone is wondering about playing the harp, it’s a great instrument if you’re bad at wrong notes like me. You set it into a key then all the really crunchy wrong notes magically disappear. 😊
There’s also a bodhran that I need to spend a lot more time with.
Do I need to wake anyone up now?
Great about the RTE show…I’ll prowl the internet for it! Good for you to have an outlet too…when you’re asked to do a ‘spot’,how easy (or not),is it to select an appropriate song or extract?
I had a good day’s playing yesterday…on the ‘stick dulcimer’ I got c 5 years ago (from Forsyth’s on Deansgate!)Great fun to play (as per the excellent youtube KAOS gear review on the ‘Seagull Merlin’) I was working on the strumming for ‘I’ll Fly Away’ (tempo as per Alison Krauss’ take on youtube)’Ponchartrain’ works well too…
While you ponder the next comp,I wondered if any other Guestbooker/players -and your good self,might want to share info about what instruments are being played,to pass lockdown-and share song ideas…I’d certainly recommend ‘I’ll Fly Away’ to a wider audience…
my late wife was born in Co Mayo and a huge O’Brien fan…In the 1980s we went to a reading of ‘The Country Girls’ in Manchester,after which Ms O’Brien signed copies…when it was our turn,she was very engaged and brief anecdotes were swapped as she signed the book…I’m reading the inscription now…
‘To Veronica,with all good wishes to another Country Girl
from EOB’ Great times
That brings music to my ears. Currently reading Country Girls A Memoir…Ms O’Brien’s writing is captivating. I had the pleasure to hear her read extracts from it in the Blackbox, Béal Feirste. A picture taken and book signed…
I think i have taken up enough space today. but with regards the clue to bag belonging to Padaí fear an phoist the question that hopefully follows is how many letters? to which the reply is hundreds! I know…I know…cabin fever. slán agus beannacht!
Christy's reply
not at all Mary….
take up all the space you like..
always a pleasure to hear from you…
Im still re reading your “Syllables Rising” from last week
Morning Christy hope all is well with you during the lockdown congrats to Aisling on the competition by the time I togged out the game was over I would have got 2 out of 4
It’s hard to believe we could have a summer of no gigs and no matches but as long as we stay safe and come out the other side it will be fine
Stay safe everyone be nice to each other
Many thanks,Christy and Juno..
Sounding wonderful…reminded me of listening to 60s BBC radio – Jim Lloyd and co …now brilliant to connect all over the world…
It was heartening to hear such a ‘live’ exchange.
Fair play to RTE and you,as ever.
Thanks for bringing some daylight into a grey,wet bunker.
Dave
I rem Jim Lloyd well, and Wally Whyton and the bass player on Country meets Folk ( his name ?)….its 53 years since I made my debut on that programme…it was utterly nerve wrecking, very exciting and carried great kudos…I got into a few “big” clubs on the back of it
Hi Christy
Have a great afternoon…if possible to have a link to Ray’s show,sometime,that would be much appreciated…if the cyberspace winds are in the right direction I might be in luck,but the internet copyright police might be on the look out,if they’re not too busy nobbling Dylan bootlegs!
Enjoy the chat…
Dave
Here’s a link to the radio 1 website – you should be able to listen live … https://www.rte.ie/radio/radioplayer/html5/#/radio1
What a wonderful and thought provoking poem…thanks for sharing the link Hilary. I look forward to reading more of his work 📚 best wishes Mary
Sorry, Hilary.
Hillary, that is beautiful. x
Hi All. Today is Poetry Day Ireland. Christy you occassionally introduce a Spoken Word piece in gigs, or invite poets to share the stage with you. In June 2016 you played a solo gig in Carrick on Suir in Co Tipperary, the home town of the Clancy Brothers and also of Michael Coady, a prose and poetry writer whom I greatly admire. During the gig you recited one of his poems, Though There are Torturers much to my delight, here is he reciting it https://youtu.be/1-LjviV9pg4 I subsequently heard that his wife was at the gig. Beir bua agus beannacht, H
I recall the night for a number of reasons…firstly, I got to recite Michael Coady’s “Though There are Torturer’s” ( I think twas yourself that recommended it to me)..after the concert,then when leaving the Theatre I was presented with a most beautiful Salmon, caught a few hours earlier on the Suir River and left at the stage door by a good listener…
getting ready here today to chat with Ray Darcy on RTE 1 this afternoon…our home places only 5 miles apart. Altho we grew up a generation apart we have a lot in common…The Curragh of Kildare for starters !..
Johnny Duhan’s song “The Voyage” was featured on Ray’s programme last week which spurred him on to get in touch…
I’m missing the Gigs, the Band ,the Crew. I still have the Songs here with me but without the special atmosphere that only a good gaggle of listeners can create
Looking forward to the two lilywhites having a chat….. and hopefully a song or two….
Just getting dressed now..I’ve had a shave,trimmed my eyebrows, nostrils and earholes….wanna look my best on the wireless
Hey Christy. After 2010, I was in england for a bit, then I was in scotland for a bit and now I’ve been living in china for many years with my wife. Was planning on visiting ireland this summer but it might not be the best year to travel anywhere so wait and see I suppose. Haven’t been to gigs in recent years but the songs remain as present as ever for me. Ever since my mam bought me your box set for my birthday in 2004, I was hooked. I’d had a few of your albums already but once I started exploring the box set, I became a bigger fan. It’s an amazing release of material, so many different kinds of songs and stories at different stages, it’s brilliant.
I remember pity the poor immigrant is somewhere on the boxset, as part of a medley or a hidden track.
Do you still sing hattie carroll? I remember it was a big player on the setlist for awhile.
” The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll” is one of my favourite songs to sing…Dylan paints such powerful pictures, he brings us right into the scenery of the place….
emptied ashtrays on a whole other level
doomed and determined to destroy all thats gentle
spoke thru his cloak most deep and distinguished
….. never made it myself as far China but no regrets….more inclined towards the “Sunny South East”….the old Box Set (1964-2004) being frequently referenced these days…it was a labour of love for all concerned..
I wish you and your wife well in the far east..keep coming back
Hi Christy
Fantastic poets and their works being mentioned here.Thanks for tip offs that will be eagerly pursued…
Mike Harding has long been a poet of some acclaim,especially for comic verse…but,I’ve just seen a wonderful poem he wrote last year,after a close friend died…a perfect summary of compassion…can’t find it online,but Mike posted it on his Twitter account a few hours ago,so ‘The Nurse’ is available at @HardingMike…I seemed to get something in my eye during the last verse…D
no better man them “our kid” from Crumpsall…his brother John is a good musician too
Rory, Counry Girls a memoir…don’t go past it… in Hamish Imlach’s words it’s both sides of the Tweed! Unputdownable!
Hello Christy,
How are you keeping?
all things considered we are doin well Thank You…peace of mind this day..Thanks Be
Hi Christy,
Such fine group chat over recent days ( even greater than normal).
There was some talk about Edna O’Brien, and i have to confess that i am not a great reader so i will have to dip in. However what i have been re-reading ,during the bunker-time, are the collected poems of Ethna Carberry ( Anna McManus). Such a beautiful range , can i recommend to folk her work.
A selection might be Rody McClorey, On Inisheer, My Yellow Yorlin and Donal Mac Seaghain Na Mallacht, but so much to wonder at ,and you need no better recommendation than that an admirer of her poetry was the great Bobby Sands.
I must try to read more, instead my mind usually strays towards the music ,just as it did on sunday and monday as i painted metal poles whilst listening to all of the beloved box set….now there is another fine thing of wonder and fascination.
Regards
Rory
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of Eavan Boland. The first time I read her poem Quarantine, love and death at the time of the famine, I was blown away:
‘In the worst hour of the worst season
of the worst year of a whole people…’ It gets me every time.
The wonderful and poetic Michael D summed her up when he said …her particular gift was to reveal the beauty in the ordinary.
Thanks Dave – there is just something so lovely that Ms O’Brien wrote ‘…all good wishes to another Country Girl…’ to your wife
Go well Christy Le grá Mary
Hi Christy
Nowhere near as tricky as the harp,but the dulcimer’s fretboard means its almost foolproof…hence ,me going for the first Appalachian model c 1970…I’ve been noodling ever since…the stick dulcimer being a welcome addition.
If Rebecca fancies ‘I’ll Fly Away’,I reckon the melody would work well on a harp…trial and error can lead to some interesting finds…especially,without an audience!
I hope the Atkin is ringing out on this grey day…kind of sums up the sombre mood after a minute’s silence in remembrance of NHS staff and care workers who died battling Covid.
Dave
sounds good Dave
Mora duit Criostóir Ó Mórdha,
I hope I got that somewhere near to acceptable. If not, I am very sorry.
Dave asked about instruments, songs and practising. Here goes.
For I don’t know how long it’s all been harp and voice for me. I have to play and sing every day or I don’t feel so good. I usually spend at least 15 minutes a day with Ride On first. I wander round the chords and then add the voice in really gradually. I like to hum round things. Then I’ll move onto other things. Whatever I’m working on or is beckoning. I like to do some things that make me feel happy but I’m getting better at letting the songs flow through without touching. I love reel in the flickering light.
If anyone is wondering about playing the harp, it’s a great instrument if you’re bad at wrong notes like me. You set it into a key then all the really crunchy wrong notes magically disappear. 😊
There’s also a bodhran that I need to spend a lot more time with.
Do I need to wake anyone up now?
Ríobhca 🙂
Thanks for sharing Rebecca…
Hi Christy
Great about the RTE show…I’ll prowl the internet for it! Good for you to have an outlet too…when you’re asked to do a ‘spot’,how easy (or not),is it to select an appropriate song or extract?
I had a good day’s playing yesterday…on the ‘stick dulcimer’ I got c 5 years ago (from Forsyth’s on Deansgate!)Great fun to play (as per the excellent youtube KAOS gear review on the ‘Seagull Merlin’) I was working on the strumming for ‘I’ll Fly Away’ (tempo as per Alison Krauss’ take on youtube)’Ponchartrain’ works well too…
While you ponder the next comp,I wondered if any other Guestbooker/players -and your good self,might want to share info about what instruments are being played,to pass lockdown-and share song ideas…I’d certainly recommend ‘I’ll Fly Away’ to a wider audience…
keep well
Dave
Hi Christy
and Mary…
agreed about Edna O’Brien…
my late wife was born in Co Mayo and a huge O’Brien fan…In the 1980s we went to a reading of ‘The Country Girls’ in Manchester,after which Ms O’Brien signed copies…when it was our turn,she was very engaged and brief anecdotes were swapped as she signed the book…I’m reading the inscription now…
‘To Veronica,with all good wishes to another Country Girl
from EOB’ Great times
Dave
That brings music to my ears. Currently reading Country Girls A Memoir…Ms O’Brien’s writing is captivating. I had the pleasure to hear her read extracts from it in the Blackbox, Béal Feirste. A picture taken and book signed…
I think i have taken up enough space today. but with regards the clue to bag belonging to Padaí fear an phoist the question that hopefully follows is how many letters? to which the reply is hundreds! I know…I know…cabin fever. slán agus beannacht!
not at all Mary….
take up all the space you like..
always a pleasure to hear from you…
Im still re reading your “Syllables Rising” from last week
Morning Christy hope all is well with you during the lockdown congrats to Aisling on the competition by the time I togged out the game was over I would have got 2 out of 4
It’s hard to believe we could have a summer of no gigs and no matches but as long as we stay safe and come out the other side it will be fine
Stay safe everyone be nice to each other